Warriors: The Fire Within Book 1: Raising Shadows
by xNYCx97
Summary: "The forest will be saved by an unexpected enemy, but a sacrifice will be made. Beware the cat you thought you could trust, but respect him all the same." This is my first time writing fanfic so reviews are appreciated! I can take some criticism too!
1. Prologue

Prologue

The dark gray tabby padded into the clearing, his ice blue eyes scanning the surrounding area. He sat, wrapping his tail around his paws, and waited. The cat spotted something coming towards him at the far end of the clearing. It was another cat with white fur with gray patches that seemed to sparkled.

"Hello Dawnstar." The tabby bowed his head in respect as the she-cat approached him.

"Smokestar, my son, I have come to deliver an important message," the shining cat mewed, "you have always had a special connection with Starclan so we wish to tell you but first we must wait for Rosecloud."

"Very well," Smokestar mewed. They sat and waited in silence. Soon another cat approached. She was a young cat with a creamy ginger pelt and a white underbelly. Her amber eyes were fierce but gentle as she nodded at Smokestar and greeted Dawnstar.

"Dawnstar, I thought I would never hear from Starclan again. I have not had any signs from you all leaf-bare and it has been tough," Rosecloud admitted.

"Yes, Thunderclan is suffering. Food is scarce and one of our elders already died from hunger!" Smokestar added.

"We are aware of that, and Stripetail hunts here, in Starclan now. We have not abandoned you, we have been waiting and watching," Dawnstar assured the cats.

"Waiting for what? All you have been watching is cats suffering and dying!" Smokestar was getting angry now, but he was trying to be as respectful as possible. Being leader of Thunderclan was stressful, he was just waiting for Starclan to show that they truly haven't abandoned them.

"Smokestar, I have come to help you and your clan! Why do you think we are here right now?" Dawnstar snapped.

"You're right. I'm sorry Dawnstar," Smokestar mewed, embarrassed at how he had acted.

Dawnstar nodded her head and mewed, "Listen carefully. _The forest will be saved by an unexpected enemy, but a sacrifice will be made. Beware the cat you thought you could trust, but respect him all the same." _

Smokestar stared at Dawnstar with a puzzled look on his face. "Wh-," he began to ask what that meant but Rosecloud cut him off. "Thank you Dawnstar, we will think hard about what you have said," Rosecloud mewed bowing her head. And without another word the Starclan warrior turned and walked away.


	2. Chapter 1

_Ok, so I hope you guys enjoyed my prologue even though it wasn't that much. I would really appreciate reviews whether they be negative or positive, maybe if you have any suggestions? Oh and I am not trying to steal any names (I just realized that Dawnstar was used in the books already, sorry!) or ideas from the original books, so I either may not realize it or like the idea and base it off of Erin Hunters. Enjoy!_

Chapter 1

Dawnkit woke up to a chill running down her spine. She shivered and yawned, taking in her surroundings. They weren't much different from what she saw every day. The nursery entrance was across from her and Mossfur, the other queen, was still sleeping with her swollen belly sticking out. Her sister, Eaglekit and her brother, Nightkit, were no where to be seen so she guessed they were already outside playing. Her mother, Birdsong, wasn't there either. She sat up and started grooming her fur. Dawnkit was a light gray tabby with white paws, belly, chest and tail tip. When she was done licking her fur flat, she stretched and walked outside.

It was cold out and a thin sheet of snow covered the forest floor. She saw her den mates rolling around in the snow together a little way off. As she was running over to join them she almost crashed into her father and the leader of Thunderclan, Smokestar. Many cats said that she looked almost exactly like him, with the same white markings and everything. The only difference was that Smokestar was a dark gray tabby while Dawnkit was lighter.

"Oh hello Dawnkit! Going to play with your den mates, I see?" Smokestar mewed with a glint of amusement in his eyes.

"Yes Smokestar! Birdsong said she was going to take us out to the sandy hollow today too!" Dawnkit exclaimed.

"Good, just be careful! It's very cold out and try not to scare the prey away," Smokestar added as he bent down to lick Dawnkit between her ears. He padded away towards the medicine cats den and Dawnkit ran and pounced on Nightkit's sleek black body.

"Hey, get off!" Nightkit mewed as Eaglekit purred with laughter. "What's wrong Whitespot, can't take a little bit of a beating?" Eaglekit mewed. "Whitespot" was a nickname that Eaglekit and Dawnkit had for their brother. It was because of a single patch of white fur that Nightkit had on the base of his tail. It was his only marking. Eaglekit was a dark brown tabby with a white belly and tail tip.

Dawnkit jumped off of Nightkit's back. "Come on, lets go find Mother so she can take us out!" she mewed. She quickly spotted Birdsong, the tortoiseshell she-cat was eating a small white rabbit beside Treeflower, one of the Clans senior warriors. The three kits ran towards their mother.

"Birdsong, can you take us out now, please?" Nightkit begged.

"Ok, but why don't you eat something first?" Birdsong purred, pushing the half eaten rabbit towards them. The kits dug in and quickly finished the rabbit. Birdsong then stood up and meowed good-bye to Treeflower. "Ok kits, let's go!" She led the kits out of the camp and they started making their way towards the sandy hollow.

Dawnkit smelled so many different scents as she padded through the forest. This was not her first time out, but it was her first time during leaf-bare. The forest looked so pretty with the snow- her and her den mates thought it was so fun to play in, but the other clan cats hated leaf-bare. As Dawnkit tasted the air, she did realize that there were not as many smells of fresh-kill as there usually was.

They walked a little further until Eaglekit hissed at them all to stop. "Do you smell that?" she whispered. The brown tabby pressed her body down into the snow, into a hunters crouch, and padded towards a bush with no leaves. She flicked her tail to signal to the rest of the cats not to follow. When she finally pounced, she turned around and strutted proudly back, a large mouse hanging from her jaws. Dawnkit looked at her in awe. Her sister was clearly the best hunter out of all of them at the moment.

"Very good, Eaglekit! Where did you learn to do that?" Birdsong asked, licking Eaglekit's ear.

"Mousepaw taught me," Eaglekit replied, dropping the mouse and burying it for later.

"You just got lucky, I could've got that too, if I wanted!" Nightkit scowled at his sister, clearly jealous and mad that she had gotten to it first.

"Yeah, you could've got it if you had actually smelled it in the first place!" Eaglekit retorted. "Ok, that's enough. Let's go, we will come back for the mouse later," Birdsong mewed, urging them to keep walking. Dawnkit was grateful for this because she was getting cold sitting there.

When they approached the sandy hollow, Birdsong curled up in the middle and watched her kits wrestling together. But soon, without even realizing they had done so, the kits drifted further into the forest. Birdsong must have been too busy cleaning herself to notice. Dawnkit was about to pounce on Eaglekit when they heard a loud yowl coming from the sandy hollow where their mother was. They raced back to Birdsong to see two badgers closing in on her.

"Birdsong!" Eaglekit yowled. She ran towards one badger and jumped on its back, fastening her small teeth to its shoulder and digging her claws into its pelt. The kits would be made apprentices any day now so they were not that small.

"No! Eaglekit, get back!" Birdsong shouted, swiping a claw at the other badger. Eaglekit ignored her and instead just bit harder and clung on to the badger with her life as it whipped around, trying to get her off.

"Don't just stand there, go get help!" Nightkit hissed over his shoulder as he ran towards the other badger. Dawnkit stood frozen to her spot with panic. She knew that she shouldn't join the fight with her kin because she was the smallest. The best thing to do was get help like Nightkit said because she was also the fastest.

Dawnkit turned and raced through the forest, running faster then she ever had in her short life. Her paws were getting colder and colder as she ran. She finally reached the camp and burst through the entrance.

"Badgers... sandy hollow... Birdsong in trouble!" Dawnkit yowled. At once, the deputy Oakclaw heard her and shouted for Treeflower and another warrior, Pantherheart, to follow him to the sandy hollow.

Smokestar was quicker. He leapt up from where he was lounging under the High Rock and raced out of camp. This was his mate and kits after all. Oakclaw's patrol followed and Dawnkit was about to run after them when a ginger paw stopped her.

"Not so fast, little one. You can't follow them. Come with me, I can help your paws." It was Rosecloud, the Thunderclan medicine cat. She picked Dawnkit up by her scruff and brought her to the medicine cat's den, setting her down in a warm nest.

"I _have_ to go Rosecloud! You don't understand, Eaglekit and Nightkit are fighting the badgers too!" Dawnkit protested.

All of a sudden, Rosecloud's eyes got wide. "What? Why would they do such a stupid thing?" She growled. "Starclan help those kits!


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Dawnkit sat anxiously waiting in front of the medicine cat's den. The poppy seeds that Rosecloud had given her only calmed her down a little bit and her paws were still sore even though the medicine cat treated them. After what seemed like forever, the brambles that blocked the camp entrance rustled and her mother entered the camp looking tired.

"Birdsong! Birdsong! Are you ok? Did you kill the badgers? Where is Eaglekit and Nightkit?" Dawnkit meowed, running up to the tortoiseshell she-cat. There was a long scratch on her shoulder and blood trickled down a cut on her ear but nothing looked too serious.

"Yes Dawnkit, I am fine, your siblings are fine too, they are just shaken up a little bit. And no, the badgers are not dead but they are badly injured and I'm sure they won't return anytime soon," Birdsong assured the kit. Behind her, Smokestar, Oakclaw and his patrol appeared in the camp. Smokestar was carrying Eaglekit and the brown she-cat, Treeflower, carried Nightkit.

"Take the kits to Rosecloud and let her see to them first. We can go when she is finished," Oakclaw ordered. Dawnkit and Birdsong followed Smokestar and Treeflower to the medicine cats den. When the two kits were finally set down, Dawnkit started bombarding them with questions.

"Eaglekit, Nightkit are you ok? What happened after I left? Did you hurt the badger? Did _you_ get hurt?" She ran around her den mates checking to make sure they were ok. They each had a number of scratches but nothing looked too bad.

"No we aren't hurt, those stupid badgers couldn't even touch us, we were clung on to their back so tight!" Nightkit boasted, springing to his paws. Dawnkit couldn't help but notice pain flash through his eyes as he stood up.

"Ha, right, the badger flung you off his back almost as soon as you got on!" Eaglekit mewed. "_I_ on the other hand managed to hold on until Smokestar and the patrol came to rescue us."

Dawnkit looked at Nightkit. His eyes were narrowed but he looked sad too. She felt bad for her brother sometimes; he just tried to be the best that he could be and he was always living in Eaglekit's shadow. Dawnkit lived in both of their shadows and she knew it. But she didn't mind. She knew that one day she would be just as great as them.

"Ok, lets see... hmm... nothing a few cobwebs can't fix, I'll be right back." Rosecloud observed them and then padded to the back where she kept all of her herbs.

"That was so brave you guys! I wish I could've been there to help...," Dawnkit mewed.

"Don't be so mouse-brained! You guys are lucky, that was a very foolish thing to do! And Dawnkit, you _did _help. You did the best thing by coming to alert the clan," Rosecloud exclaimed as she spit the cobwebs out on the floor next to her. Eaglekit and Nightkit hung their heads as Rosecloud put cobwebs on them and gave them poppy seeds to eat. "All done, you can go, but tell Birdsong and Smokestar that they can come see me now."

The kits padded out of the den and went to find their parents. When they told them that they could go see Rosecloud, Smokestar pulled them to the side to talk to them. "Eaglekit and Nightkit, that was a very brave and noble thing to do, but it was also extremely stupid. You could have got yourself killed! How do you think the clan and your kin would feel if something happened to you?" Smokestar growled.

"Well, we couldn't just leave our own mother there to fend for herself against two badgers! If we didn't distract those stupid creatures, you guys might not have made it in time to save Birdsong! Besides, we've already heard this all from Rosecloud," Nightkit argued.

Smokestar shook his head then looked at Dawnkit. "You made the right choice, coming to get us Dawnkit," he mewed gently. He looked back over at his other two kits. "But I will admit that you two did fight well even though it was not as much fighting as holding on for your life. We will see, maybe you can become apprentices soon. Now, run along." Smokestar purred. The three kits looked at each other excitedly and ran off towards the apprentices den.

"Let's go tell Mousepaw and the rest of the apprentices what happened! I bet _they_ never got to fight, or even see a badger before!" Eaglekit suggested. They padded into the apprentices den where a light brown tom was sharing tongue with a ginger she-cat.

"Hi Mousepaw, Robinpaw!" Dawnkit greeted them. "Oh, hello! Have you come to tell us about the badgers?" Mousepaw mewed.

"How did you know?" Eaglekit asked.

"I heard Dawnkit when she came to tell the clan... I have to admit, I was pretty upset that I didn't get to see them," Mousepaw admitted.

"So, tell us what happened!" Robinpaw meowed. At once, Nightkit started telling the story of how they were simply out playing at the sandy hollow when two badgers attacked their mother, but Nightkit bravely fought them off and saved the day. He always exaggerated his stories and everyone knew it, but no one ever said anything, they just sat and listened with amusement. "Oh and Smokestar said that we are gonna become apprentices soon too!" Nightkit added at the end of his story.

"Wow, I'm excited for you guys to become my den mates again! It seems like forever since we were in the nursery together!" Mousepaw meowed. Mousepaw and his brother Goldenpaw were once Dawnkit, Eaglekit and Nightkit's den mates. Mousepaw and Goldenpaw became apprentices two moons ago and after that, the three kits were left alone with just each other.

"Yeah! We're looking forward to it!" Dawnkit mewed. "Well we'll talk to you later, bye!" The three kits padded out of the den.

It was beginning to get dark out when they walked outside. As they walked into the nursery, Dawnkit could hear Rosecloud's voice coming from inside.

"Come on Mossfur, you're doing great, just one more!"

The kits padded in to see that Mossfur was just finishing her kitting! Birdsong was there too, her cuts all healed up, and licking a little bundle of gray fur. Dawnkit cautiously padded towards her mother. "Dawnkit! I didn't see you there! Can you and your siblings wait outside for now? I'll call you in when this is over," Birdsong meowed. Dawnkit nodded and led her den mates outside. They waited for some time before they were called back in.

Mossfur was laying down at the far end of the den suckling her kits. There were two- a dark gray tom and a white she-kit.

"They're so cute, what are you going to call them?" Eaglekit asked.

"The gray tom is Fogkit and the white she-kit will be Dovekit," Mossfur replied, gazing down at her kits, her eyes full of love.

"Ok, come on kits, let Mossfur get some sleep," Birdsong mewed. "As a matter of fact, you guys should get some sleep too." Dawnkit and her siblings didn't argue, not even Nightkit. They all had a long day and wanted sleep more than anything now. Dawnkit was asleep before she even put her head down.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey, gather here beneath the High Rock for a clan meeting." Smokestar stood on top of the large rock, looking down at his clan as they all emerged from dens and stopped sharing tongues to see what was going on. This was the day Dawnkit, Eaglekit and Nightkit would be made apprentices. Two days had passed since the badger attack and the kits were so excited.

"Nightkit, stand still while I try to get your fur to lay flat!" Birdsong mewed. She was trying to make sure all three soon-to-be-apprentices were looking nice and presentable for the ceremony.

"We gather here today to make three brave kits apprentices. Eaglekit, Nightkit and Dawnkit are six moons old and they deserve to be apprentices more than any cat. Eaglekit and Nightkit acted bravely when the badgers attacked and Dawnkit made a smart decision. From now on Eaglekit will be known as Eaglepaw. Pebblenose will be your mentor. Nightkit, you shall be known as Nightpaw. Your mentor will be Oakclaw. And Dawnkit, you will be known as Dawnpaw. Treeflower will mentor you. I trust you three warriors to teach these young cats everything you know. Good luck with your training." Smokestar bowed his head and watched his only three kits as they touched their heads to their mentors noses.

Dawnpaw gave Treeflower's shoulder a respectful lick. She couldn't believe it! She was now an apprentice and her mentor was one of the most respected cats in Thunderclan and, not to mention, a very good friend of both of her parents.

"Eaglepaw! Nightpaw! Dawnpaw!" The clan chanted their names and Dawnpaw's chest swelled with pride. Her warrior training has finally begun.


	4. Chapter 3

_Sorry for such a long wait guys, this chapter is a little longer and school has kept me busy. I was also lacking inspiration so this chapter is a little boring but I promise the next one will have plenty of action! Thanks for reading and reviewing!_

Chapter 3

The light gray tabby opened her mouth and breathed in the many scents of the forest. Some were familiar and sweet while others were foreign and stank. The cold wind ruffled her fur and she shivered.

"What do you smell, Dawnpaw?" A dark brown tabby she-cat crouched next to her.

"I smell... something foul... yuck, what is that Treeflower?" Dawnpaw wrinkled her nose in disgust at the new scent.

The bigger cat purred with amusement. "That would be Shadowclan, we are right near their border. Come, let's go closer." She led Dawnpaw closer to the border until they came to a long stretch of black ground. It stank just as bad as the Shadowclan cats, if not worse.

"That's the Thunderpath. Monsters travel on this and they are very dangerous," Treeflower explained. "But don't worry, they usually never leave the Thunderpath so you should be safe from then," she added as the smaller cat gave her a frightening look.

Dawnpaw approached the Thunderpath slowly and sniffed it, then laid one paw on it. It was hard and ice cold and felt rough under her paw. All of a sudden she felt a rumbling under her. A loud roaring sound came from a little further down the Thunderpath. It was a monster.

"Dawnpaw, get back!" Dawnpaw jumped back quickly as a monster roared down the Thunderpath. She shivered with fear and sunk into the shadows. "It's ok Dawnpaw. Come on, let's go explore some more."

The two cats turned away from the Thunderpath and padded away, their paws leaving foot prints in the thin layer of snow. It was the day after Dawnpaw's apprentice ceremony. She was excited to be going out to explore the forest with her mentor, Treeflower for the first time. Her siblings, Nightpaw and Eaglepaw, were also made apprentices but they insisted that the three of them go out separately. Dawnpaw agreed though she was a little sad. She used to spend so much time with them, but she knew that she wouldn't be as much anymore.

As they walked further, Treeflower showed Dawnpaw the Great Sycamore, a huge tree that was not far from the Thunderclan camp. Treeflower said that it was a great place to catch prey and to practice climbing. They trudged along further until Treeflower signaled with her tail for Dawnpaw to stop.

"Now, be careful, we are approaching Snakerocks. Deadly snakes live there and they can kill a cat as small as you with a single bite. Many cats have died from snake bites because they were not careful enough," Treeflower explained. Dawnpaw was led closer and then she peered around a bush to see a large rock covered in snow. Since it was leaf-bare, there were not many snakes out, but she did see one or two. The two cats quickly turned away and moved on.

Treeflower showed Dawnpaw where the twolegs lived, the Owl-tree, and the Sunningrocks, which were fought over by Thunderclan and Riverclan constantly. Dawnpaw learned all the different scents off the forest and the cats and the other things that lived there. When they arrived at the Riverclan border, they sat to rest for a little. Dawnpaw licked her paw and ran it over her ear.

"So, how do you like the forest so far?" Treeflower asked.

"It's wonderful! I've never ventured this far before...," Dawnpaw replied thoughtfully.

"Then you should see it in greenleaf and newleaf, it's even better! Can I ask you a question Dawnpaw?" Treeflower said with uncertainty in her voice. Dawnpaw nodded. "How do you feel about your sibling, Eaglepaw and Nightpaw? It seems like you live in their shadow a little... do they push you around or anything?"

Dawnpaw shook her head. "They don't push me around, and I don't mind that they are better than me right now. I learn from them too. I know some day I will be just as great as them, if not greater! You'll help me with that though, right?"

Treeflower purred and smiled. "Of course! So tell me, do you smell any prey?" Dawnpaw sniffed the air and opened her mouth, drinking in the scents. There was not much- a faint trace of badger and Riverclan. Dawnpaw now understood why all the cats hated leaf-bare so much. When she was a kit, she would always be the first one taken care of. Now that she had to catch the prey, and hunt for her clan first, she understood.

"Nothing," Dawnpaw told Treeflower.

"It's ok, I didn't really expect you to smell anything... go back to camp and I'll try to find something to bring back," Treeflower assured her. Dawnpaw nodded and ran off.

When she arrived back at camp, Eaglepaw and Nightpaw were sitting in front of the apprentices den sharing tongues and eating a squirrel.

"Hello guys, how was the first day of training?" Dawnpaw asked, settling down besides Eaglepaw.

"It was cold! But it was fun too, look I caught this, try some! It's not great but it's better than nothing," Eaglepaw answered, pushing the squirrel to Dawnpaw. She sunk her teeth into the thin squirrel. She didn't realize how hungry she was until now.

"It's a little stringy, but it will do," Dawnpaw purred. For the rest of the day, the three apprentices shared tongues with each other and helped the elders and Rosecloud with whatever they needed. Dawnpaw thought it was one of the best days she ever had. She curled up in her nest next to Nightpaw that night and fell asleep in an instant.

Dawnpaw slid her paws over the cold ground, her eyes were narrowed in concentration as she stalked the mouse that was scuffling through the undergrowth. When she finally got close enough, she pounced. The mouse didn't even see her coming and she killed it with a bite to the neck.

"Well done, Dawnpaw! You are becoming a fine hunter!" Treeflower meowed, appearing out of no where. "You did well today, let's go gather the rest of the fresh-kill and then we can go on a patrol."

Dawnpaw nodded. It had been almost two moons since she was made an apprentice and Treeflower told her that it was time for a hunting assessment. She had achieved one of her goals: she was a better hunter than Nightpaw _and _Eaglepaw. At least that's what many of the Thunderclan cats told her. Treeflower said it was because she was smaller and swifter.

She had caught a decent amount of prey considering it was the end of leaf-bare- three small mice, a squirrel and a large rabbit. They dropped the prey into the fresh-kill pile at camp. It was slowly getting bigger as newleaf got closer.

"Can I go get Goldenpaw and Pantherheart to come patrol with us?" Dawnpaw asked. Treeflower nodded and Dawnpaw ran to get Goldenpaw, a golden brown tom who was a couple of moons older than Dawnpaw and a good friend, and Pantherheart, a sleek black tom who was Goldenpaw's mentor. They met back up with Treeflower at the camp entrance then as soon as they were all ready, they set out. The four headed toward the Shadowclan border. Goldenpaw and Dawnpaw trailed behind their mentors.

"So how's training going? You just had an assessment right?" Dawnpaw glanced over at Goldenpaw. He was large for an apprentice, bigger than his brother Mousepaw. His muscles rippled under his golden pelt with every paw-step.

"Yes, it went well. I caught a lot of prey," Dawnpaw replied. "No surprise there," Goldenpaw mewed. "You're a better hunter then all of the apprentices!" Dawnpaw looked down at her paws in embarrassment at his compliment.

"Thanks, but I'm not _that _great," Dawnpaw replied. "Yes you are. You will be a great fighter too, but probably not as great as me," Goldenpaw purred. They walked on until they came to the Shadowclan border. Pantherheart sniffed the air then shook his head is confusion. Dawnpaw sniffed the air too. She not only smelled Shadowclan, but Windclan too. There was something else... _blood!_

"This isn't good," Treeflower murmured. "There must be a battle going on!"

"Well let's go help!" Dawnpaw suggested, her paws tingling with excitement. She had never been in a battle before, or even started practicing her fighting moves with Treeflower yet.

"No, we can't intervene. This is not our battle and we can't afford to possibly loose any warriors," Pantherheart meowed. He looked at Treeflower. "We'll mark the borders first and let Windclan know that we still remain strong, then we must go report this back to Smokestar." When they finished their job and headed back to camp, Treeflower and Pantherheart went to report to Smokestar and Goldenpaw went to get the large rabbit that Dawnpaw caught earlier from the fresh-kill pile. He sat in front of the apprentices den about to dig in when he beckoned Dawnpaw over with a flick of his tail.

"Want to share?" He asked. Dawnpaw nodded and sat next to him and took a large bite out of the rabbit. "So what do you think of the Windclan/Shadowclan battle going on?" She asked after a few moments of silence.

"I don't know, but since it was Windclan in Shadowclan territory, it looks to me as if Windclan were the attackers. That hardly ever happens. Windclan almost never invade another clans territory alone, especially not Shadowclan. But we should be on a careful lookout; if Windclan defeat Shadowclan, they may come after us next," Goldenpaw ventured.

"I agree, maybe Treeflower will finally start battle training with me now!" Dawnpaw meowed hopefully.

Suddenly, there was a yowl from the other side of camp. Dawnpaw looked over to see Smokestar climbing to the the top of HIgh Rock. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey, join beneath the High Rock for a clan meeting." Goldenpaw took the last bite of the rabbit and then walked over to the High Rock with Dawnpaw. The Thunderclan cats started to appear in the clearing. Most of them except for Pantherheart and Treeflower looked like they had no clue what was going on. Dawnpaw had a feeling that the gathering was about Windclan.

"Cats of Thunderclan," Smokestar began. "Pantherheart and Treeflower have just told me some news that could possibly threaten the safety of our clan. While they were on a patrol near Shadowclan border, the smelled Windclan and blood. This can only mean one thing- Windclan have attacked Shadowclan." A murmur of surprise rippled through the crowd of cats. The news was very hard to believe.

"This also mean that Thunderclan can possibly be in danger of being attacked as well," Smokestar continued. "We can not put it past Windclan to invade our territory too if they defeat Shadowclan. This is why I want extra patrols along the Shadowclan _and _Riverclan border, and I want those patrols to go up and check Fourtrees at least three times a day for any fresh signs of Windclan. Mentors, make sure your apprentices are well trained for battle and there must be at least four cats per patrol. You may carry on with your duties now."

The crowd began to thin out. "I knew it," Goldenpaw mewed. "There's no doubt in my mind that Windclan will try attacking us."

"I agree, but what if-" Dawnpaw's statement was cut off by Treeflower calling her name. "Oh sorry Goldenpaw, I better go see what she wants." Goldenpaw nodded his head and Dawnpaw padded over to her mentor.

"How about we start battle training now? Unless you're too tired, I know you had a busy day," Treeflower meowed. Dawnpaw looked up at the tabby she-cat with excitement. She was a little tired but she was eager to learn. "No, I'm not tired! Let's go!" The two she-cats padded out of camp. _Now my warrior training has really begun! _Dawnpaw thought.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Treeflower ran toward her apprentice, teeth bared. She dove at Dawnpaw at the last minute with her paws outstretched. Dawnpaw ducked to her left and out of the way of her attacker. She leapt forward and bit Treeflower's hind leg and swiped her paw, claws sheathed down her hindquarter. Treeflower whipped around and tackled the smaller cat. They rolled in the dirt, trying to pin each other when finally Dawnpaw was down. Though she struggled, she could not get back up.

"Good job, that was better than last time. Keep in mind that your strengths can be another cats weakness. You are quick and nimble. Going up against a larger cat may not always be a bad thing because they can be slower," Treeflower reminded Dawnpaw, letting her up.

"I wish Windclan would just attack already... it's been almost half a moon since they attacked Shadowclan!" Dawnpaw meowed, smoothing down her ruffled fur with her tongue.

Treeflower shook her head. "There is no way to be sure that they won, and even if they did, they would need time to recover before springing another attack. Besides you're not ready for battle yet. Let's go again and remember that if you are ever pinned down, you have hind legs for a reason."

When Treeflower attacked her for a second time, Dawnpaw was pinned again. Remembering Treeflower's advice, she used her hind legs to push Treeflower off of her. As soon as her mentor was flung off and standing again, Dawnpaw whipped around and kicked Treeflower in the side with her back legs, knocking the dark tabby over. Dawnpaw finally pinned Treeflower down for the first time since her training began!

"Very good Dawnpaw! Now let me up, we can do that a couple of more times then hunt if you'd like," Treeflower meowed. The cats practiced until the sun was almost down. They went hunting then ate together outside of the warriors den. Dawnpaw had formed a close bond with her mentor, which made her warrior training all the more enjoyable.

When they were done, Dawnpaw padded to the apprentices den to curl up for a short nap. She was almost asleep when she heard a yowl come from outside the den. She jumped up and poked her head out to see what was going on. She saw a black tom in the middle of the clearing panting. It was her brother, Nightpaw.

"Windclan is attacking near Fourtrees! They have a lot of cats with them!" He managed to get out.

"Where's Oakclaw?" Smokestar growled. "He was on the patrol; Robinwing and Sunfire are with him. Mousepaw was with us too but he went to look for a hunting patrol for help. There are too many cats! I think Breezestar is there as well!" Nightpaw explained quickly. Robinwing was an apprentice when Dawnpaw was made one but became a warrior shortly after. Sunfire is Goldenpaw and Mousepaw's father and Mousepaw's mentor.

"Smokestar, most of our experienced warriors are out on patrol hunting and we have to leave some warriors here to guard the camp!" Treeflower meowed.

"I'll go, if Breezestar is there than I'll handle him. Treeflower you go too. Birdsong, Barkpelt and Snowfoot stay here. Where's Pantherheart and Goldenpaw? I want them to come" Smokestar demanded. "I think I saw them going to the training hollow," Treeflower replied then whipped around to face Dawnpaw. "Go get them and hurry, tell them to go to Fourtrees!"

Without a second thought, she ran out of camp. The only other time she ran as fast as she was now was when the badgers were attacking her mother, Birdsong. Back then she had been a kit. When she burst through the bushes and trees and into the training hollow, she saw Goldenpaw pinning Pantherheart to the ground.

"Pantherheart! Goldenpaw!" She yowled. The two cats looked up at her. They obviously didn't hear her coming by the looks on their faces. "Windclan is attacking, near Fourtrees! Smokestar wants you guys there and fast!" Dawnpaw panted. The two cats sprung up onto their feet. Pantherheart nodded at her then he and Goldenpaw ran off.

Dawnpaw sat to catch her breath. _Now what?_ she thought. She was itching to fight but she hadn't been ordered to go. _I wasn't ordered to stay in camp either..._ she realized. She stood up and made up her mind. She would go towards the battle and watch from afar. If she saw any Windclan cats break free from the battle, she would run back to camp to defend it.

She padded through the forest, silently and carefully as if she was hunting prey, except she felt like the one being hunted. She hated knowing that right now, there were cats in her home that would not hesitate to hurt her. She went towards the Owl Tree. If she could climb it, it would be a good vantage point where Dawnpaw could watch the battle unseen. The forest had an eery silence about it, but as she moved closer to the Owl Tree, she could hear the hissing and yowling of cats and just smell Windclan. She kept getting closer and the sounds grew louder.

_Could they have gotten as far as the Owl Tree?_ Dawnpaw thought nervously. And when she was a few tail-lengths away from the Owl Tree, she knew that they had. She climbed a tree nearby as high as she could and went as far out onto one of its limbs as her weight would allow her. She looked into the clearing and saw a mass of cats fighting and blood spilled on the ground.

It looked as if Windclan had brought their whole clan! All of Dawnpaw's kin was fighting there except for her mother Birdsong who was safe, defending the camp and Nightpaw. They did not leave much protection. Both the leader and deputy were fighting, along with Treeflower, Sunfire and Pantherheart- Thunderclan's strongest and most experienced warriors. Yes, the elders Raggedpelt and One-ear were not totally helpless and _might_ be able to defend themselves against a warrior, and Mossfur, the only queen would defend her kits with her life but many of the warriors, except for three, and apprentices, were fighting. Her sister, Eaglepaw, and her mentor Pebblenose were probably the ones out on the hunting patrol with Stripedpelt, though they would probably already be fighting. Dawnpaw looked around for her sister and father but could not spot them.

All of a sudden the leaves on the forest floor below her rustled and she saw a black head pop out and scan the battle scene. She noticed that it was Nightpaw. So he decided to come and check out the battle too. Dawnpaw was about to call out to him, when he ran off and jumped into battle. Eaglepaw and Nightpaw had started their battle training a little earlier than Dawnpaw so they were just a little more experienced, but Dawnpaw was still surprised that no one had forbidden them to fight.

Dawnpaw continued to watch when she saw three cats fighting along the edge of the battle and slowly inching further and further away from the rest of the crowd. It was Nightpaw and Eaglepaw fighting a large brown tom together. The Windclan cat was huge, bigger than any cat she had seen. She recognized him as Horsestorm, the Windclan deputy. Her siblings took turns swiping their paws at Horsestorm. Eaglepaw circled around and bit his hind leg. Nightpaw reared up on his hind paws to try to get a better aim at the big toms face but Horsestorm lifted one of his huge paws and batted Nightpaw across the face. The black tom, who looked so small up against the Windclan warrior, was thrown to the side. Horsestorm whipped around to face Eaglepaw. Dawnpaw watched in panic as Nightpaw slowly got up. She could not see his face but she saw blood dripping from it. Nightpaw and Dawnpaw both watched as Eaglepaw fought hard. Dawnpaw expected Nightpaw to jump back in but he just stood there and watched his sister being beaten.

"What are you doing Nightpaw?" She whispered to herself. Dawnpaw could not bear to sit there and watch any longer. She jumped onto the ground and raced towards the three cats just as Horsestorm pinned Eaglepaw to the ground. Right at that moment, Dawnpaw knew that Eaglepaw would be killed.

"Nightpaw, help me!" Eaglepaw cried. Dawnpaw ran faster, she barreled past Nightpaw and just when Horsestorm was about to deliver the finishing blow, Dawnpaw leapt onto the toms back and bit his shoulder. She dug her claws into him, clamped her jaws shut and held on for her life. Horsestorm yowled in pain and released Eaglepaw. He swung around trying to get the smaller cat off of him. Dawnpaw closed her eyes as he reared up on his hind legs, but then suddenly fell back down. She could feel him growing weak under her and jumped off to see Eaglepaw baring her teeth at him and blood dripping from her claws and his belly. Dawnpaw realized that Eaglepaw must have clawed Horsestorm's stomach as he reared up. Dawnpaw swiped Horsestorm across his face one more time and he ran off.

"Eaglepaw, are you ok?" Dawnpaw asked turning to face her sister. The brown tabby had a lot of scratches but none looked that bad except for a long scratch in her shoulder.

"I-I'm fine," she replied shakily. She looked at her shoulder and started licking the scratch. "I should probably head back to camp and get this checked out by Rosecloud." Dawnpaw nodded her head in agreement as Eaglepaw limped away then she whipped around to see her brother still standing there, staring at her. He was bleeding heavily from a long scratch on his face that stretched from his left eye and went across his nose to his jaw on the right side of his face. Dawnpaw realized that that was his first battle scar and would probably never fade.

"What were you thinking Nightpaw! Why didn't you help Eaglepaw, she was almost killed!" Dawnpaw hissed at him. She was fuming. How could her own brother just sit and watch as their sister was almost killed? Nightpaw shook his head and his face showed no emotion.

"You better figure out where your loyalties lay Nightpaw," Dawnpaw growled and turned away from him. She always knew that Nightpaw could be violent but not like this. She thought that he was better than this. She looked around the clearing. The crowd was thinning out. Both Windclan and Thunderclan cats were injured and Dawnpaw spotted a mass of gray fur lying motionless a little way off. It was her father.

She ran towards him. "Dad?" Dawnpaw licked his fur and waited. She knew the noble Thunderclan leader was losing a life, though she didn't know which one this was. All of a sudden, Smokestar gave a violent jerk and opened his eyes.

"Mother? Dawnstar, is that you?" He whispered. "No, Dad, it's me, Dawnpaw," Dawnpaw corrected. She knew that Dawnstar was leader before Lightningstar, who was leader before Smokestar. She was also Dawnpaw's grandmother.

"Oh, Dawnpaw are you ok? I thought you were back at camp," Smokestar meowed. Finally coming to his senses and standing up.

Dawnpaw shook her head. "No I was watching from afar. There's something I have to tell you Smokestar but let's get back to camp first."

"Ok but first I must tell you that the life I just lost was my fifth life. I only have four left. I wanted you to know since you witnessed me losing it but this is not news that you run and tell the whole forest. It is just between us. Only Rosecloud, Birdsong and Oakclaw are to know for now," Smokestar replied.

"I understand Father. Do you... do you know if any cats were... killed tonight?" Dawnpaw asked slowly. Smokestar closed his eyes and hung his head before nodding. He flicked his ears to his left and Dawnpaw looked around. A small lump of brown fur lay a little way off. She saw two golden brown cats next to it. It was Mousepaw.

Dawnpaw ran over to see the brown cat covered with dry blood and a large gash in its neck showed where the final blow was given. She was never particulary close with Mousepaw but they were friends and she was close with his brother Goldenpaw. Nonetheless, he was part of the clan so he would be mourned by every cat. She touched her nose to his fur and closed her eyes, sending up a silent prayer to Starclan.

"I'm so sorry." Dawnpaw bowed her head at Goldenpaw and Sunfire. "Who did this?"

"I don't know but when I find out, I'll tear them to shreds," Goldenpaw growled. Dawnpaw flicked her tail over his back to soothe him.

"Easy Goldenpaw. You will get your revenge some day but for now, help me carry his body," Sunfire ordered. They picked up Mousepaw's body, which looked even smaller than usual, and carried it off. Dawnpaw looked around and realized that all of the Thunderclan cat's were wounded, some worse than others. She saw her clan mates helping each other. She spotted Treeflower limping badly across the way and ran over to help her.

"Oh- Dawnpaw thank you. You didn't fight, did you?" Treeflower asked, leaning on Dawnpaw.

"No, only towards the end, Eaglepaw and I fought together but I'm not hurt," Dawnpaw assured her mentor.

When every cat was back in camp, Rosecloud cleaned Mousepaw's body up and it was laid in the center of the camp so the cats could mourn. Barkpelt, who was his mother, was distraught. Her and Goldenpaw refused to leave their kins body until it was buried. Dawnpaw went to lay next to him and licked his ear.

"It'll be ok Goldenpaw. He fought bravely and no cat could've asked for more from him- from either of you," Dawnpaw comforted. Goldenpaw didn't answer but pressed his body into hers to show that he had heard. She sat there for a while longer to pay her respects then decided to go se if Rosecloud needed help.

When all of the injured cats were taken care of and fed, Smokestar called a clan meeting.

"As you all very well know, the battle today was hard and a young apprentice lost his life. Mousepaw fought bravely and Starclan will honor him for that," he bowed his head and the rest of the clan did the same. "I still do not know why we were attacked, or Shadowclan for that matter but there will be a gathering soon and hopefully we will find out there. I did hear Breezestar say something about revenge but nothing is certain. Many Windclan and Thunderclan cats were injured, but I still want patrols to remain the same, but do not overwork yourselves. That is all." Smokestar leapt down from the rock and beckoned to Dawnpaw to join him in his den.

"Was there something you had to tell me Dawnpaw?" Smokestar asked, settling down in his nest. Dawnpaw's heart skipped a beat. What would she tell him, that his son was not to be trusted and was almost the cause of one of his daughters death?

Dawnpaw took a deep breath and said, "Before the battle ended, I was watching from afar, in a tree a little way off. I didn't want to get into the fight because I wasn't sure if you would be mad, even though Eaglepaw and Nightpaw were and-"

"Nightpaw? I thought I told him to stay in camp...," Smokestar meowed.

"Well I saw him sneak into battle. After that I saw him and Eaglepaw fighting the Windclan deputy Horsestorm together. They were drifting further and further from the battle and then Nightpaw was hurt and Horsestorm got him out of the way. Horsestorm pinned Eaglepaw and then... I don't know after that things got weird...," Dawnpaw mewed. She was starting to regret saying anything. What if Nightpaw was just frozen in shock? No it couldn't be, that _never_ happened to Nightpaw. He was perfectly capable of helping Eaglepaw, regardless of the scratch on his face.

"What happened Dawnpaw? You can tell me, it's ok," Smokestar persisted.

"Well, Nightpaw, he got up and he just stood there... and watched Horsestorm almost kill Eaglepaw. He could've helped but he didn't... just watched. I had to run in and save her. If I wasn't there, Eaglepaw would've gotten killed," Dawnpaw finished. She looked into her fathers eyes and thought she saw worry and fear flash across them.

"So, you're telling me that my son was almost the cause of one of his clan mates deaths?" Smokestar asked. Dawnpaw nodded. She was sure that the leader was going to yell at her and punish her for such a ridiculous accusation but he didn't. He just nodded and said, "Very well Dawnpaw. I'll take your word. Please tell Rosecloud that I would like to see her." Dawnpaw nodded and backed out of the den. Did this mean that Smokestar also thought that Nightpaw was not to be trusted? Was he going to punish his only son, or worse, exile him? Dawnpaw didn't know the answers to her question but she did know that she wasn't eager to find out.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the High Rock for a clan meeting."

The sun was just beginning to go down but it was still hotter than it has been in a while. Most of the snow had melted by now and the cats were happy. Prey would be plentiful again, now that newleaf was here.

Dawnpaw yawned and walked out of her den. She spotted Goldenpaw sitting near the High Rock, grooming his fur. His parents, Sunfire and Barkpelt, sat next to him, their heads were raised proudly. Today was the day that their son would be made a warrior.

"Hello Goldenpaw, are you excited?" Dawnpaw purred, coming up to sit beside the golden brown tom.

"Yes, I just wish Mousepaw was here with me... we should be sharing this moment together," Goldenpaw replied solemnly. It has been four days since the battle with Windclan and things have gotten better for the whole clan.

"Well, he's watching over you. He's proud of you and he should be, you deserve this." Dawnpaw licked Goldenpaw's cheek and he smiled at her.

"Today we are here to make a very brave cat a warrior. Goldenpaw has worked hard to become a warrior and fought well against Windclan. His late brother, Mousepaw should be here with him but is with Starclan now, watching over us. Pantherheart, do you think this apprentice is ready to become a warrior?"

"Yes, he is ready," Pantherheart replied to Smokestar's words.

"I, Smokestar, leader of Thunderclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn. Goldenpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and defend this clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do."

"Then by the powers of Starclan, I give you your warrior name. Goldenpaw, from now on, you will be known as Goldenblaze. Thunderclan welcomes you as a full warrior."

Dawnpaw joined in with the ceremonial chanting of the new warriors name. "Goldenblaze! Goldenblaze!"

"You shall sit a silent vigil outside the camp from now until tomorrow. Congratulations," Smokestar mewed. Dawnpaw nodded at Goldenpaw as he walked past her to start his vigil. She went to go get something to eat and picked out a mouse. She spotted Eaglepaw eating alone in front of the nursery, watching Mossfur's two kits explore the camp. She padded over to join her. Ever since Dawnpaw saved her sister from almost being killed by the Windclan deputy Horsestorm, they have been very close.

"How's your shoulder?" Dawnpaw asked settling down next to her den mate.

"It's better, but still a little sore," Eaglepaw replied. The large gash she had in her shoulder was healing well. "Have you spoken to Nightpaw?"

"Not since the fight... actually I've barely seen him either. He's probably too embarrassed to show his face," Dawnpaw replied. At the battle, Eaglepaw and Dawnpaw's brother Nightpaw just stood and watched as his sister was almost killed. The news had spread in a short time and not many cats trusted him now. No cat saw much of him anymore either.

"I'm just so confused... why would he do something like that?" Eaglepaw wondered.

"I don't know Eaglepaw, but whatever it is, hopefully we'll find out," Dawnpaw replied. They sat in silence and ate their fresh-kill. Dawnpaw watched the kits exploring the camp. They were still very young, only around three moons old.

"Kits, they're so cute. Maybe one day we'll have some of our own...," Eaglepaw mewed, reading Dawnpaw's mind.

"Yah, one day. I wonder though, who would be the father," Dawnpaw ventured.

"Oh don't play dumb, we all know how you feel about a certain tom," Eaglepaw purred. Dawnpaw looked at her sister in confusion. "Goldenblaze! Every cat in the clan see's what you two have!"

_Goldenblaze?_ Dawnpaw thought. She had never thought about a possible mate, after all she was still young but now that she thought about it, there was something about the golden brown tom...

"Dawnpaw, want to come hunting with me?" The light gray tabby heard a voice call. It was her mentor, Treeflower.

"Sure! I'll talk to you later Eaglepaw," Dawnpaw meowed. She padded over to Treeflower. "Where to?"

"I was thinking Sunningrocks. Now that it's warmer, more prey will be out," Treeflower mewed, walking out of camp.

"It's getting late though, are you sure there will be a lot out?" Dawnpaw asked.

"Oh yes, there will be." The two cats walked through the forest. Treeflower still walked with a little bit of a limp from the battle. She had two bite marks and a cut in her back leg that originally looked really bad, but were better now.

"How's your leg? You're still limping, I see," Dawnpaw asked.

"It's getting better. I just have to keep using it. We should be able to start battle training again soon, don't worry," Treeflower assured her apprentice. The older cat was right, there was a lot of prey around Sunningrocks. They each caught a nice amount of prey and were about to head back when Dawnpaw spotted a Riverclan patrol on the other side of the river.

"Hey, Treeflower, should we tell Riverclan about Windclan?" Dawnpaw meowed.

"I suppose we should. They will just find out about it at the the gathering tomorrow anyway." Treeflower walked to the edge of the river. "Troutfur!" She called. The leader of the patrol, a silver tom turned to look at them then padded over.

"Hello Treeflower. How is the prey running?" Troutfur mewed kindly. Thunderclan and Riverclan were not fighting and were civil to each other for now.

"Good. And you?" Treeflower replied. Troutfur nodded his head. "This is my apprentice Dawnpaw. Dawnpaw, that's Riverclan's deputy Troutfur and thats Mistcloud. This must be your apprentice Troutfur?" Treeflower acknowledged the other cats. Mistcloud was a light gray she-cat and the other cat, who looked slightly smaller then Dawnpaw was a gray and black tom.

"Yes, this is Webpaw, the clans newest apprentice. It's nice to meet you Dawnpaw, and nice to see you again Treeflower. Will you be attending the gathering tomorrow?" Troutfur meowed.

"Most likely. There is something that you may want to know. Less than a moon ago, Windclan attacked Shadowclan for some reason that we aren't sure of. Four days ago, they attacked us too, near the Owl Tree. Judging by the way they fought and looked, they won the battle with Shadowclan. We put up a good fight and many of their warrior along with our warriors were injured and an apprentice of ours was killed. You should be on the look out, they may attack you next," Treeflower informed. Webpaw looked shocked. He must not have been an apprentice for too long.

"I'm sorry to hear that you have lost a clan member Treeflower," Troutfur dipped his head in respect and Mistcloud and Webpaw did the same. "And thank you for that news. It's a surprise though, no one would expect Windclan to do that. Have you spoke to Shadowclan?"

"No, not yet. That can wait until tomorrow. But we better get going now. Be careful," Treeflower mewed to the Windclan cats and turned away.

When the two cats arrived back at camp and dropped their prey into the fresh-kill pile, Dawnpaw headed towards the nursery to visit the kits. Only the small gray tom, Fogkit was outside. His sister Dovekit and his mother Mossfur were no where to be seen.

Fogkit, padded cautiously toward her. "Hello there little one! How do you like camp?" Dawnpaw asked the kit, bending down and licking him between the ears.

"It's so big! And I bet the forest is bigger!" Fogkit squeaked.

"Yes, but you must not go venturing into it yet. It can be a dangerous place if you don't know how to protect yourself," Dawnpaw warned.

"I know! Raggedpelt told me and Dovekit stories of how he battled with badgers and Shadowclan and One-ear told us how he fought the dogs and lost his ear! Did you ever battle anything Dawnpaw?" Fogkit was suddenly not the nervous little kit that he was at first glance.

"You can say that. It wasn't much of a fight though. My sister, Eaglepaw, and I worked together to scare off Horsestorm. He's the deputy of Windclan and he's the biggest tom any cat has ever seen! Just ask the elders about him, they may be able to tell you stories!" Dawnpaw loved kits, and loved even more how they hung on every word she said. They were amazed at the smallest things. Indeed Dawnpaw did remember stories about Horsestorm, and how he beat off two dogs when he was an apprentice by himself. Whether the stories were real or fake, she didn't know.

Fogkit looked up at her in amazement and was about to say something when a voice called his name. His mother Mossfur padded out of the nursery looking frantic.

"It's ok Mossfur, Fogkit is with me. I was just having a little chat with him," Dawnpaw assured the worried mother.

"Oh- ok Dawnpaw. I trust you, you're so good with kits," Mossfur complimented.

"Thanks Mossfur, but really, it's all about finding what interests them and using it to keep them occupied," Dawnpaw purred. "And I'm sure Fogkit and Dovekit are good kits."

"Yes, they are great. They don't give me nearly as much trouble as you and your siblings gave Birdsong! Well, come on Fogkit, you must be exhausted. Into the nursery you go!" Mossfur rounded up her kit with her tail and lead him into the nursery.

"Bye Dawnpaw! Come visit me again!" Fogkit called.

Dawnpaw purred and was about to head to her own den when she saw a flash of black out of the corner of her eye. She turned to see a black tail whip around behind the nursery and disappear. She knew at once that it was Nightpaw, just by the scent in the air. Dawnpaw glanced around the empty clearing to make sure no one was watching then quietly followed her brother. She followed him out of the camp by an exit behind the nursery and then to the dirt place. She watched in the shadows as he rolled around in the dirt. Dawnpaw knew he was doing that to mask his scent, but why?

She followed him through the forest, staying a safe distance away so he did not see, hear or smell her. The black tom lead Dawnpaw through the forest, taking random twists and turns. When they eventually passed the Owl Tree, Dawnpaw had a feeling that her brother was going to Fourtrees and once again, she asked herself, why?

When Nightpaw arrived there, the she-cat climbed a tree and hid there to watch. She waited for a moment while Nightpaw sat in the middle of the clearing waiting. Then out of no where, a huge brown shape emerged from the shadows on the far side of the clearing. It was Horsestorm.

"I thought you wouldn't come Nightpaw," the brown tabby meowed.

"Why would you think that? I have been coming for the last moon haven't I?" Nightpaw replied cunningly.

Dawnpaw was getting a bad feeling about this. Why has Nightpaw been meeting up with a Windclan deputy for a moon?

"I've been laying low like you asked, but no one in the clan trusts me anymore... I should've know Dawnpaw would run and tell my father. She was always the good one," Nightpaw growled.

"Be patient Nightpaw, this will all pay off in the end. We almost had Eaglepaw, nobody would've guessed_ Dawnpaw _would be the real threat," Horsestorm replied.

"Wh-what do you mean? Why would she be the real threat?" Dawnpaw could not see her brothers face but his voice was shaky.

"Well, she's the one who saved Eaglepaw and revealed that you may not be a very trustworthy cat to the clan isn't she? She sabotaged the first stage in our plan and is obviously more powerful than we thought. She has what you lack- brains," Horsestorm explained.

Dawnpaw shifted her wait uncomfortably in her spot. She did not like what she was hearing at all.

"I can be smart too! You just have to give me a chance!" Nightpaw protested.

"Silence!" Nightpaw shrunk back. "I gave you a chance. If you would've mislead your clan the night we attacked, Windclan would've won and I- we would have been on our way to glory! You ultimately saved your clan in the end!" Horsestorm growled.

"I-I'm sorry Horsestorm. I'm trying," Nightpaw whimpered.

"Well, you aren't trying hard enough. Don't you want to rule the forest? I can give you that Nightpaw! Forget Thunderclan! We will build a clan even more powerful then Starclan! But it will take time. We must pick off the cats who matter the most, starting with your kin."

"My kin?"

"Yes. There is no room for weakness and they will be the first to hurt you emotionally. It's better to get it done now. Dawnpaw and Eaglepaw will have to go. But Dawnpaw is too smart for you and I may not get another chance at her. The best time to get a cat is when they are weak- physically or emotionally. First we must kill the cat that taught her everything she knows. You told me yourself that they have a close bond. Can you tell me who that is Nightpaw?"

Dawnpaw did not want to hear the answer. There were a number of cats that could be and she leapt out of the tree and ran back to camp before she could hear her brothers reply.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The line of cats stood at the top of the hill, looking down on the crowd of cats below. Dawnpaw smelled Shadowclan and Riverclan, but no Windclan. She waited beside her mentor Treeflower and one of her good friends, Goldenblaze. Around her, other cats of Thunderclan waited, including her sister Eaglepaw. Their brother Nightpaw was not with them. When her leader and father, Smokestar, gave the signal, Dawnpaw and her clan-mates raced down towards the clearing.

As Dawnpaw approached the four great trees, she saw the other cats more clearly. Riverclan and Shadowclan cats were huddled together. On the large branch of the big tree, Russetstar, a dark ginger she-cat and leader of Shadowclan, stood exchanging low whispers with the Riverclan leader, a blueish gray tom named Rainstar. Smokestar went to join them and the other Thunderclan cats scattered and went to join acquaintances from the other clans.

Dawnpaw was left standing there, not sure what to do. She had only been an apprentice for a little over three months and this was her second Gathering. At the first one, she was too shy to go and talk to the other cats so she sat off to the side with her siblings.

"Hey Dawnpaw, why don't you come with me and I'll introduce you to some cats I know," Goldenblaze suggested, coming up behind her and licking her ear.

"Ok sure, lead the way." Dawnpaw followed the golden brown tom through the cats. She saw many unfamiliar faces mixed with her own clan-mates. When they got to the edge of the clearing, Dawnpaw saw three cats sitting together, a gray tom, a ginger tom, and a tortoiseshell she-cat.

"Dawnpaw, that's Flamepaw and Puddlepaw of Shadowclan," Goldenblaze mewed, flicking his tail towards the two toms. "And Spottedfur of Riverclan." Dawnpaw nodded her head at the she-cat.

"Hello Dawnpaw, you're Smokestar's daughter right?" Spottedfur asked. Dawnpaw nodded.

"Good, now that you're here Goldenpaw-," the ginger tom started to say until Goldenblaze interrupted him.

"Flamepaw, I'm not Goldenpaw anymore, I'm Golden_blaze_! I was just made a warrior yesterday," Goldenblaze corrected, raising his chin proudly.

"Oh- well congrats, Goldenblaze!" Flamepaw exclaimed. The other two cats congratulated him as well. "Anyway, we were just talking about the Windclan invasion... Spottedfur said they attacked Thunderclan too."

Goldenblaze nodded. "It's true. We managed to chase them away but..." Dawnpaw saw Goldenblaze hesitate and look down. The other cats didn't know that Mousepaw was killed.

"Mousepaw didn't make it. He was killed," Dawnpaw finished for her friend. The other cats looked shocked and bowed their heads.

"I'm so sorry Goldenblaze," Puddlepaw murmured, licking Goldenblaze's ear in comfort. They didn't get to say anymore to each other because a loud yowl echoed through the clearing.

"We cannot wait any longer for Windclan, so we'll start this Gathering now," Rainstar announced. He started to say something when Dawnpaw heard rustling in the bushes behind her and a turned around to see a light gray tabby tom stalk into the clearing. It was Breezestar, the Windclan leader.

"Windclan is here," he growled, approaching the other leaders. Heads turned to look at the Windclan cats as they padded through the clearing. They all looked skinnier then usual and a few had fresh battle scars. A familiar dark brown tom appeared and Dawnpaw made eye contact with him for a moment then turned away quickly. The large cat was Horsestorm, the Windclan deputy who almost killed Eaglepaw and who was manipulating Nightpaw.

Dawnpaw watched him as he passed her, large black paws landed surprisingly softly on the ground. Dawnpaw wondered how a warrior so big and muscular hunted rabbits in the open moors. Most Windclan cats were skinny and nimble, but the deputy wasn't.

"Very well, then I will begin." Rainstar began to talk about the usual things- prey was running well as usual, a new litter of kits was born a few days ago- nothing new.

"I wonder why Windclan was so late," Flamepaw meowed. Dawnpaw looked over at the ginger tom. His fierce amber eyes stared intently at the leaders. He looked not much younger than Goldenblaze and the same size as him. He did not look like a cat you wanted to cross in battle. Puddlepaw was smaller and skinnier, he reminded Dawnpaw of herself. He looked like a fast runner and a fine hunter. Spottedfur looked like a well-rounded she-cat. She was probably only a little older then Goldenblaze, or she probably wouldn't be hanging around with apprentices.

"Who knows why Windclan does anything anymore," Puddlepaw answered.

When Rainstar was done, Smokestar and Russetstar stepped forward together and turned to face Breezestar.

"Breezestar, we demand to know why you attacked our clans for no reason," Smokestar growled. Russetstar lashed her tail angrily beside him.

"You have injured many of our cats and took the life of a Thunderclan apprentice! What was the reason for this?" Russetstar spat.

Breezestar stepped forward. He stared down at the cats for a few moments then spoke. "Cats of all clans, Windclan has attacked Shadowclan and Thunderclan for several reasons. One, Windclan is sick of being the weak cats in the forest. We never get respect from any other clans and we've had enough." Windclan cats yowled their agreement while the other clans shook their heads and protested.

"Another reason is because prey is running very low on the moors. There are barely any rabbits and the ones that we do find are skinny. We have lost a couple of cats due to starvation and we needed more prey. We could not wait until this day to negotiate so we decided to take prey by force."

"And what did you gain from it all? You still don't have anymore prey than you did before the fighting!" Oakclaw protested. The clearing went from silence to a sudden uproar of hisses and yowls.

"Silence!" Smokestar boomed and then turned back to Breezestar. "Surely, you could've found another way! You could've came into our territory in peace and asked for help instead of launching an attack."

Breezestar shook his head. "No, that would not have worked. See, my deputy Horsestorm, whom I trust one hundred percent, told me that he has smelled cats from all three of your clans on Windclan territory! Stealing prey and spying, no doubt! I have smelled it myself!" The leader yowled.

Now there was even more of an uproar, Windclan cats hissed at the other clan members, a few cats had to be stopped from attacking others and the leaders were now having a violent verbal fight. Dawnpaw sat there in her spot and looked around her. Puddlepaw, Spottedfur, and Goldenblaze had all turned to the nearest Windclan cat to hiss and spit at them. Flamepaw was sitting in the same position as he was before, his head down and fur bristling. _Did he know something? Has he been stealing from Windclan? _Dawnpaw thought.

"Enough! Starclan is angry, look!" Rainstar interrupted the cats and looked up at the sky. The rest of the cats did the same and Dawnpaw saw that the moon was fully covered with clouds. The clearing had grown darker and colder.

"This Gathering is over," Russetstar hissed and leapt down from the tree branch to lead her clan away. Dawnpaw said good-bye to Flamepaw, Puddlepaw, and Spottedfur then went with Goldenblaze to meet up with her clan. Once everyone was ready to go, they headed back to camp. Dawnpaw saw Eaglepaw a little way ahead and ran up to meet her.

"Hey, where were you?" Dawnpaw asked the brown tabby.

"Oh, I was with a couple Riverclan apprentices. I couldn't find you anywhere!" Eaglepaw replied.

"Sorry about that, Goldenblaze introduced me to some friends," Dawnpaw replied.

Back at camp, most of the cats were still awake, which was no surprise. They all wanted to hear what happened at the Gathering. Dawnpaw looked over at her father, thinking that he would spring up onto High Rock and call a clan meeting. But he didn't. He called Oakclaw and the other senior warriors into his den and disappeared from sight. The news of what happened at the Gathering was already spreading. The cats who had attended were telling their clan-mates who stayed in camp. Eaglepaw went over to tell Robinwing and Dawnpaw decided that she would just go to sleep.

She ducked into the apprentices den to see Nightpaw curled up in the corner. The steady rise and fall of his body showed that he was already asleep. Dawnpaw, and the rest of the clan, still hadn't forgiven him for almost letting Eaglepaw get killed. She told herself that she would have to keep a close eye on her brother, especially after she witnessed his meeting with Horsestorm. Dawnpaw could not look Nightpaw in the eye since.

"Good job, Dawnpaw. You are becoming a wonderful fighter!" Treeflower panted. Dawnpaw watched her mentor lick her ruffled fur. "Windclan would be fools to cross your path again!"

"It's been two moons since they attacked! I don't think they are coming back," Dawnpaw retorted.

"Don't be so sure. A Riverclan patrol caught a few Windclan warriors on their territory not too long ago," Treeflower meowed. Dawnpaw nodded. She remembered that day, it wasn't too long ago.

"Treeflower!" Dawnpaw whipped around to see her brother Nightpaw standing at the edge of the clearing.

"Nightpaw, what is it?"

"Er, Oakclaw wants to see you near Fourtrees... he says its important...," Nightpaw stammered.

"Oh, ok then. Dawnpaw go back to camp, Nightpaw, lead the way." Treeflower and Nightpaw left the clearing and Dawnpaw headed back to camp.

Dawnpaw was sharing tongues with Goldenblaze when it happened. Nightpaw was entering the camp, but slowly like something was weighing him down. He came in, backside first. Dawnpaw realized he was dragging something... it was a cat. Dawnpaw stood up to get a better look. The dark brown body looked life-less.

"No- Treeflower!" Dawnpaw ran towards her mentors limp body, pushing Nightpaw out of the way. She touched her nose to the she-cats side. It was ice cold. Treeflower was dead.

"No! No, no, no... Treeflower...," Dawnpaw whimpered. She couldn't believe this was happening. Treeflower was more then a mentor to her. She was a best friend.

"It was Windclan... Oakclaw told me to take the body back while they chased the rest of Windclan away... there was another battle near Fourtrees," Nightpaw mewed.

"Oakclaw? Oakclaw was patrolling near the Twoleg place, he's no where near Fourtrees," Snowfoot, a large white tom, growled.

Then it all made sense to Dawnpaw. The night she witnessed Horsestorm and her brother's meeting. _First we must kill the cat that taught her everything she knows... _Horsestorm's words echoed in her head. Treeflower was that cat. How didn't Dawnpaw see this? She might have been able to save her mentor.

"You liar, you did this! You killed her!" Dawnpaw hissed at her brother.

"Wh-what? No, I didn't, I-," Nightpaw looked taken aback like no one would ever expect him to do such a thing.

"Don't lie again! If you didn't do it, it was Horsestorm and you took her to him! I saw you and the Windclan deputy together at Fourtrees, you've been planning this for moons!" Dawnpaw growled, moving towards her brother. At this point, she didn't care if he was kin or not. He was a traitor and a coward. The clearing was silent as every cat stared at the two den-mates.

Nightpaw stared at his sister, lost for words. The guilt on his face was obvious, he was caught and he knew it. All of a sudden Dawnpaw sprang at him and tackled him to the ground, claws unsheathed. Dawnpaw clawed at his stomach as she pinned him to the ground and no cat tried stopping her.

He managed to flip her off of him, then ran for it. Dawnpaw pursued him, ignoring Smokestar's call for her to stop. She chased him threw the forest, towards Fourtrees. Dawnpaw was faster and she was right on his tail. She lashed a claw out out his hind-quarters and he stumbled and tripped over his own paws. Dawnpaw jumped on her brother and bit his shoulder. Nightpaw let out a yowl of pain but Dawnpaw didn't let go. But the next second, she felt the wind get knocked out of her as something rammed into her side and she went flying off of her brother. She landed hard on the forest floor. She squeezed her eyes closed in pain and when she opened them, a huge black paw was mouse-lengths from her nose. Dawnpaw looked up into the fierce amber eyes of Horsestorm.

"Get up," he growled. Dawnpaw couldn't move. "Get up and face me if you're so tough." His face was close to hers now, his scent overpowered her. She lashed her claw out at him and scratched his nose. Horsestorm leapt back and shook his head, clearing the blood from his face. He bared his teeth and was about to strike. Dawnpaw closed her eyes and waited for the end but it never came. A new scent flooded her nose, a more familiar scent. She looked up to see two large golden brown toms fighting the even bigger dark brown tabby. It was Goldenblaze and Sunfire. Dawnpaw had a horrible pain in her side and she took a shuddering breath. She couldn't move and her vision was becoming blurry. She closed her eyes and the last thing she saw before she became unconscious was Horsestorm and Nightpaw fleeing towards Windclan territory.


	8. Chapter 7

_Hey guys! Im sooo sorry that it took me so long to write this chapter. I have been very busy lately and also started a couple of other projects that may or may not be published. I was also just simply lacking inspiration and could not think of a way to keep the plot moving along and make it exciting at the same time. Book 1 is coming to an end, I think I will make one more chapter after this and it will be over. I was planning on making a Book 2 but only if I get enough reviews! Ok so this is probably my longest chapter yet and hopefully it is exciting enough for you! Please read, enjoy and review_

_:3_

Chapter 7

Dawnpaw found herself at Fourtrees. She wasn't sure how she got there, but there she was. The air was calm, no wind blew and the clearing was dark but at the same time, seemed like it was shining. Her paws tingled and she felt powerful.

"Dawnpaw." The tabby she-cat jumped at the sound of her name. She turned around to see another cat- white with gray patches- a few tail-lengths away.

"Dawnpaw, I have come to give you a message from Starclan," the she-cat mewed calmly, walking closer to the smaller cat. Dawnpaw stared into her eyes. It was like staring into her own reflection. The Starclan warrior had the same ice blue eyes as Smokestar and Dawnpaw herself.

"Dawnstar... is that you?" Dawnpaw meowed, coming to a sudden realization. Dawnpaw had heard stories of the Thunderclan leader. She was Smokestar's mother and Dawnpaw's grandmother and the leader before Lightningstar, Dawnstar was one of the best and most respected leaders in Thunderclan history. She had retired from her position because she was becoming too old for her job. She was leader for a very long time and Lightningstar became leader in her place. After him, Smokestar became leader and Dawnstar died right after.

"Yes, young one, it is me," Dawnstar replied.

"Am I... dead?" Dawnpaw asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

"No, no. You are not ready to join the ranks of Starclan, you still have much to do back in the forest. You have bruised your ribs and hit your head. But I must tell you- Nightpaw is not the only one," Dawnstar meowed. Then without another word, she turned and walked away.

The first time Dawnpaw regained consciousness, she did not open her eyes. She lay where she was, unmoving and parted her lips slightly. Her mouth was dry but around her she smelled the tangy scent of herbs and she knew she was in the medicine cats den. She heard low whispers not too far away and pricked her ear.

"How is she? When will she be awake?" Dawnpaw recognized the voice of her father.

"Hush Smokestar. I don't know when she will wake- that's up to Starclan. It doesn't matter anyway, I won't allow you to talk to her about it right away." The soothing voice of Thunderclan's medicine cat Rosecloud replied to Smokestar's anxious questions.

"But-"

"Smokestar, I know you want to find out what happened and what Dawnpaw knows but it will just have to wait! I can't even be sure she will remember anything."

There was a low growl. "Very well. Inform me when she wakes up."

Dawnpaw closed her eyes and became unconscious once again.

The second time Dawnpaw awoke, she opened her eyes. She was laying on her right side because her left side was the one that was injured. Her vision was blurry at first, but after blinking them a few times, she could see clearly. She saw a ginger pelt a little way off, sifting through herbs. Dawnpaw tried to call out to her but her throat was too dry and instead all that came out was a low moan. This caught Rosecloud's attention anyway.

"Oh, Dawnpaw, you're awake!" Rosecloud exclaimed, approaching the tabby she-cat and licking her forehead. "How do you feel?"

"Ok... I need water," Dawnpaw croaked.

"Of course, one moment." Rosecloud hurried over to her supply of herbs and picked up a bundle of moss. She dropped it into a little pool of water at the back of the den then brought it over to her patient. Dawnpaw lapped at the water thankfully. The cold water tasted good and her side did not hurt that much anymore.

"Here Dawnpaw, eat this, you have been unconscious for five days. You must be starving." Rosecloud dropped a large, juicy-looking squirrel at Dawnpaw's paws.

Dawnpaw thanked the medicine cat then dug into the fresh-kill.

"Are you sure you're ok Dawnpaw? Do you feel any pains in your head or side?" Rosecloud asked.

"Honestly Rosecloud, I'm fine," Dawnpaw assured her. And it was true. She felt great, maybe just a little groggy and stiff from sleeping in the same spot for five days, but that was all. Starclan must of healed her. _Starclan!_ The dream Dawnpaw had, what did it mean? She would ask Rosecloud about it, but not yet.

"You know Dawnpaw, you are very well liked amongst Thunderclan. Which is no surprise; your father was too and you're a likable cat. You had many visitors while you were unconscious," Rosecloud purred.

"Really? Like who?" Dawnpaw asked, surprised at this. She was just an apprentice after all.

"Well Eaglepaw, Smokestar, Birdsong, and Goldenblaze visited daily. But I think every cat in the clan came at least once... even little Fogkit begged Mossfur to take him to see you!"

Dawnpaw purred at this news. She didn't realize how strong of a support team she had! She was about to ask about Treeflower when she remembered- her old mentor was dead. Killed by either Horsestorm or Nightpaw or both. And what happened to Nightpaw? Had he went to live in Windclan with Horsestorm? The last she saw of her brother and the Windclan deputy was when Goldenblaze and Sunfire chased them off. _Good riddance,_ Dawnpaw thought.

As if Rosecloud read her mind, she sat next to the apprentice and said, "Dawnpaw, we waited as long as we could for you but we had to bury Treeflower... I know you will be upset because you didn't get to give her a proper goodbye but..."

"It's ok Rosecloud, I understand. But I want to visit where she was buried as soon as possible," Dawnpaw replied. "And what happened to Nightpaw?"

"After Goldenblaze and Sunfire chased him and Horsestorm off, they fled towards Windclan. We haven't had any trace of them on our territory since. Your brother probably is training with Windclan now," Rosecloud meowed. Dawnpaw knew it. Her brother was a traitor and did not deserve to stay in Thunderclan anyway. She was happy he was gone.

A few of days passed since Dawnpaw woke up. She had had many visitors but none asked her any questions about Nightpaw and Horsestorm. She started apprentice training soon after with Eaglepaw and her mentor Pebblenose because it was not yet decided who would be her new mentor. Oakclaw, Nightpaw's old mentor and deputy, was in a bad mood since the incident. He was mad at himself for not realizing what Nightpaw was doing but nobody blamed him.

When Smokestar called Dawnpaw into his den one evening, she knew exactly what was coming.

"Dawnpaw, Rosecloud asked me to wait to ask you this question but I really must know," her father started. "What went on between Nightpaw and Horsestorm?"

So Dawnpaw explained it. All of it. From the battle at Fourtrees with Windclan when Nightpaw almost let their own sister, Eaglepaw, die, up until she was laying unconscious on the forest floor right after she was almost killed by Horsestorm. The whole time, Smokestar just sat and listened. When she finished he just shook his head and was silent.

"Dad? Are you ok?" Dawnpaw asked.

"Dawnpaw, I am going to tell you something that you must not tell any other cat. Only Rosecloud knows about what I am about to tell you. Moons ago, back when you were still a kit, Starclan came to Rosecloud and I in a dream. Specifically our kin Dawnstar. She told us a prophecy but did not say what it meant. _The forest will be saved by an unexpected enemy, but a sacrifice will be made. Beware the cat you thought you could trust, but respect him all the same." _

Dawnpaw repeated the prophecy in her head several times but still didn't understand it. "Smokestar, when I was unconscious, Dawnstar came to _me _in a dream too... it might have something to do with your prophecy."

"Did she really? Stay here, I'm going to get Rosecloud." Smokestar padded out of his den and returned moments later followed by the creamy ginger she-cat.

"So, Dawnstar came to you in a dream huh?" She asked.

Dawnpaw nodded. "She said 'Nightpaw is not the only one' and then just left. I don't know what it means..."

"Rosecloud, I didn't think Dawnpaw would be part of the prophecy... I can't see how she fits into any of this but then why did Starclan go to _her_? But it does confirm our suspicions about Nightpaw," Smokestar wondered.

"Perhaps Dawnpaw is not directly involved in the prophecy but a contributing factor. Dawnpaw, did she say anything else to you?" Rosecloud asked.

Dawnpaw thought for a moment. It was not a very long dream. Dawnpaw asked her grandmother if she was dead and Dawnstar said no then told her the message, but...

"She told me that I still have much to do and that I'm not ready to join the ranks of Starclan, when I asked her if I was dead."

"Hmm... yes I think Dawnpaw is the answer to our prophecy. She will help us but now the question is, what about Eaglepaw? Has she been getting any dreams, being that she is kin?" Rosecloud closed her eyes and thought.

"I don't know but I don't think we should say anything to her either. Just keep an eye on her and if you see her acting suspicious, let me know and we can question her," Smokestar meowed. "That is all for now. Do not tell any other cat about this, it's between us three and if you have any other dreams Dawnpaw, tell me or Rosecloud immediately."

Dawnpaw nodded her head and Smokestar dismissed her.

Nothing exciting happened for half a moon. Clan life went along as usual, Dawnpaw spent a lot of time with Goldenblaze, Eaglepaw and, surprisingly, her mother Birdsong. Dawnpaw was never very close with her mother but ever since Treeflower died, Dawnpaw had become closer to her kin and did not take the ones she loved for granted. Fogkit and Dovekit would become apprentices soon and even though Dawnpaw wanted to mentor Fogkit, she didn't think she would become a warrior in time. Everything was calm. But it was always calm before the storm- literally.

A storm broke out late one night. It was raining hard, the wind blew harder. Dawnpaw was scared because she never experienced something like this before, not many of the cats had. The elders had though, so they helped. Cats grabbed al of the fresh-kill they could and took it into the medicine cats den, which was one of the safest places in camp next to the nursery and leaders den. So that's where the Thunderclan cats stayed for the night- all huddled together in three dens. Dawnpaw was in the leaders den because that was the safest place since it was built into a rock. The elders, queens, kits and Smokestar's kin stayed there. They huddled together for warmth and Dawnpaw listened to the elders tell Fogkit and Dovekit stories.

Eventually Smokestar told them to try and get so sleep because they would have a lot of work to do when the rain stops. Dawnpaw curled up next to her sister and mother and tried to sleep, but she couldn't. She was nervous something would happen so she sat and listened to the howling of the wind and if she heard anything outside. It was so loud, Dawnpaw couldn't see how the other cats were already asleep. A long time passed by and the apprentice still couldn't fall asleep. She thought she could hear something outside, more howling but not from the wind. It stopped and Dawnpaw thought that it was probably just her imagination and that she was just tired so she closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep.

But the howling came again. She lifted her head and stood up slowly. Just as she did that, Oakclaw burst into the den.

"Thunderclan is being invaded! Wake up!" The light brown deputy hissed then ran out. Smokestar was up in a heartbeat.

"Birdsong, Eaglepaw and Dawnpaw, go out there and fight. I'm going out too but keep your eye on this den," Smokestar ordered. The he turned to the queen and elders. "Mossfur, Raggedpelt and One-ear, can you take care of yourselves for now?"

"Of course we can! Don't worry Smokestar, this old cat still has his claws!" Raggedpelt meowed.

Smokestar nodded and ran out of the den. Dawnpaw followed and when she first stepped out into the storm, a violent chill went down her spine and in a matter of seconds, she was soaked to the bone. It was not even very late, morning couldn't be far away but the sky was still dark. Dawnpaw breathed in the scents around her and smelled her own clan mixed with Windclan _and _Riverclan. _Starclan, please tell me they didn't bring their whole clan! We wont stand a chance! _Dawnpaw thought desperately.

"Windclan and Riverclan! They're working together now?" Eaglepaw hissed. Then she ran off into the battle. Dawnpaw looked around and saw Goldenblaze fighting with a large black tom. He didn't look like he need any help though. Dawnpaw then spotted Robinwing, the small ginger she-cat was fighting with a much larger cat.

Dawnpaw raced to help her and smelled that the cat was Windclan. She jumped on the intruders back and tried to dig her claws into his shoulder. The cat flung her off easily. It was hard to get a good grip when every cat was soaking wet. Dawnpaw got back up and leapt at the tom. He moved out of the way at the last second but as he did that, Robinwing slashed a claw down the cats side. He hissed and turned to face the smaller she-cat. Dawnpaw tackled the tom and bit hard into his shoulder while Robinwing clawed at him. The Windclan warrior managed to get out of Dawnpaw's grasp but once he was up, he ran out of the camp.

"Thanks Dawnpaw," Robinwing panted. She was bleeding from a cut on her cheek but it didn't look too bad. Robinwing was small but quick just like Dawnpaw.

Dawnpaw nodded and looked around. She was looking for Horsestorm and Nightpaw. A heavy weight crashed into her and at first she thought it was an enemy but when she saw the cat clearly she realized it was Eaglepaw.

"Eaglepaw! What are you doing?" Dawnpaw growled.

"I just ran all the way to Shadowclan! Smokestar told me to ask them for help because we are outnumbered but Shadowclan is being attacked too!" Eaglepaw panted and ran off to find Smokestar. _Shadowclan too?_ Dawnpaw thought with a groan. She didn't have much time to dwell on it though because out of the corner of her eye, she saw a cat going into the leaders den with a second one right behind it.

Dawnpaw ran towards the den and got there before the second cat squeezed into the den. She clawed at the cats haunches. When he whipped around, Dawnpaw recognized him as the Riverclan apprentice, Webpaw. Dawnpaw hissed and leapt at him, knocking him over and pinning him to the ground. She clawed at his belly with her hind legs but the apprentice slithered out from under her. Webpaw tried to jump at her but she moved out of the way and raked her claws down his side and bit his hind leg. He let out a yowl of pain then fled.

Dawnpaw hurried into the leaders den and saw the elders and Mossfur standing up to not one, but two other apprentices.

"Nightpaw! Flamepaw!" She recognized the two familiar cats in a heartbeat. They were her brother and a... _Shadowclan _apprentice? _This night is just full of surprises,_ Dawnpaw thought. But the Shadowclan apprentice did not seem like the traitor type when Dawnpaw had met him...

"Oh, well if it isn't my lovely sister," Nightpaw meowed sarcastically. "Come to sabotage our plans again?"

"Dawnpaw, help us!" Fogkit mewled.

"What are you doing Nightpaw? And Flamepaw, why would you do this to your clans! What can you gain from something like this?" Dawnpaw meowed.

"Well first off I would like to begin by telling you that I am no longer Nightpaw, but Nightheart and Flamepaw is now known as Flamepelt," the black tom replied. "And we have joined Windclan with Horsestorm, Webwhisker did too, but it seems that you have taken care of him already..."

"You're right I did! He's weak, you all are! Any cat that betrays his clan for power is weak!" Dawnpaw hissed.

"We'll see about that!" And Nightheart leapt at Dawnpaw, knocking her over.

She felt claws raking her belly and smelled blood. Nightheart had certainly improved his skills in the short time he was away from Thunderclan. Using all of her strength, she tossed her brother off of her and got up, only to feel another weight on her back. She forgot about Flamepelt. She tossed this cat off too and the two traitors stood on opposite sides of her. They both sprung at the same time but at the last minute, Dawnpaw moved out of the way and they crashed into each other. She then attacked Flamepelt first, biting the large toms neck and scratching her front claws down his shoulder. She was pushed off of him by Nightheart who pinned her again. She managed to reach up and slash at his face with her claws but he still held her down. Dawnpaw saw Flamepelt moving towards them out of the corner of her eye but then he was tackled by another ginger cat- Raggedpelt!

Dawnpaw felt claws slash across her face and looked up into the eyes of her brother. A new energy filled the light gray she-cat. It was anger now. This was the cat who betrayed the whole clan, who was Dawnpaw's kin, who took part in Treeflower's murder, who almost let Horsestorm kill their sister. Nightheart must have seen the anger in her eyes because his grip slackened a little and Dawnpaw threw him off of her as hard as possible. He was flung into the dens wall and landed on the ground with a thud.

She did not care if she killed this cat, if that's what it took to put all this madness to rest, she would do it. Dawnpaw approached her brother, who was trying to get up, slowly. It looked like the blow had hurt him.

"Give up yet brother? Do you really still want to do this? I'll kill you if I have too," Dawnpaw growled then attacked the black tom. She bit his hind leg hard and he yowled. Nightheart got up and they tried to tackle each other at the same time but Dawnpaw pinned him this time. She bit hard into his neck and he tried to scramble out from under her but Dawnpaw would not let him go. She soon tasted blood in her mouth and decided to let go. She would not kill him yet, not here. She got off of him but he still laid there whimpering in pain.

"Get up, I should kill you now but I'll let you go. If I ever see you again, I'll kill you. I said get up! What would Horsestrom say, you coward," Dawnpaw growled. At this, Nightheart stood up feebly and limped out of the den as fast as he could.

Dawnpaw looked around the den and saw that Raggedpelt was laying near the entrance of the den, One-ear crouched next to him, licking a nasty bite in the ginger toms shoulder. Flamepelt was no where to be seen.

"Raggedpelt, are you ok?" Dawnpaw asked, licking the elders head.

"I feel great Dawnpaw. I got to fight my last battle today... in the leaders den, against a traitor, for my clan! I couldn't have asked for a better last day," the old tom mewed.

"L-last day? Raggedpelt don't say that, Rosecloud can help you, just-," One-ear mewed frantically and licked his friends wound faster. Dawnpaw never saw and elder so upset but the she remembered that One-ear and Raggedpelt had been best friends since they were apprentices. To One-ear, it was like losing a brother.

"No One-ear. I can't live forever and neither can you. Let me go, I welcome this death and couldn't of asked for a better or nobler one," Raggedpelt comforted. He closed his eyes, smiled and took his last breath. Then he was gone. One-ear closed his eyes and laid next to his lifeless den-mate.

Dawnpaw realized that it was quiet outside. The storm had stopped and so had the battle. She turned to see Mossfur comforting her kits. Dovekit looked scared but Fogkit kept wriggling around trying to escape her mother.

"Dawnpaw! Dawnpaw! You're such a good fighter! You showed those traitors not to mess with us! I can't wait to start my training and become an apprentice!" Fogkit exclaimed as Dawnpaw walked over to them. She purred then turned to Mossfur

"Is Dovekit ok?" She asked the queen.

"Yes, just a little nervous. I will ask Rosecloud to give her some herbs. Come on little ones, the battle is over. Let's go to Rosecloud." Mossfur rounded up her kits and padded out of the den.

"One-ear, I'll get some warriors to help move Raggedpelt's body outside," Dawnpaw meowed to the mourning elder. He did not say anything but twitched his ears to show he had heard.

When Dawnpaw walked outside, the sun was coming up and the rain had stopped completely. The camp was a mess from the rain and battle but there was no blood on the ground because the rain washed it away. Thankfully, Dawnpaw saw no other bodies but she did see her clan mates limping to the medicine cats den or helping their friends.

She spotted Smokestar near the entrance with Birdsong and Sunfire and padded towards them. None of them looked like they had any serious injuries.

"Dawnpaw, are you ok? You have scratches, you should go get yourself taken care of," Birdsong mewed.

"I will, but first I have to tell you that Raggedpelt is dead. He died protecting his clan and fighting against a warrior. He is in your den with One-ear," Dawnpaw meowed and bowed her head. The three other cats did the same.

"A terrible loss but we must get somebody to move the body outside. Birdsong, Sunfire, would you please do the honors?" Smokestar asked. The two warriors nodded and walked off.

"Are you ok Father? Did you lose another life?" Dawnpaw asked. Smokestar shook his head and Dawnpaw gave a sigh of relief. "Ok good but I must talk to you and Rosecloud as soon as possible. It's about the prophecy."

"Very well. We will speak about it later but first go get healed. Then I will call a meeting and we can talk after that," Smokestar mewed.

Once everybody was healed, Smokestar climbed up onto High Rock. He did not have to call the clan into the clearing because they were all already there, mourning Raggedpelt.

"Cats of Thunderclan. I am calling this meeting on account of the previous events. We have lost a brave cat today. Though Raggedpelt was an elder, he fought to protect his clan and died in the act. For that we honor him. We were attacked today by not just Windclan, but Riverclan too. Why? I am not sure but it could be because of the storm. Windclan has no shelter on the moors and the rivers in Riverclan territory could have flooded. What I do know is that Shadowclan was attacked too so we must speak to them about this." There were gasps from the crowd when Smokestar said this because not everybody knew that Shadowclan was attacked too. "I would also like to say that because of this storm, we must start repairing the camp right away and hunting. So I would like Oakclaw and Pebblenose to take out a hunting patrol each and for the rest of the cats, to start repairs. Sunfire, you can be in charge of that. That is all for now."

Smokestar jumped down off the rock and flicked his tail towards where Dawnpaw sat with Rosecloud, signaling for them to follow him into his den.

"So Dawnpaw, you said that you had to tell us something about the prophecy," Smokestar said when they were settled.

"Ok well I don't know if you saw him but Nightpaw was at the battle... except he's not Nightpaw anymore, he's Nightheart. I caught him sneaking into your den with Webwhisker and Flamepelt. They used to be Riverclan and Shadowclan apprentices, but they joined Horsestorm too. All three of them are Windclan warriors now. Raggedpelt died while battling Flamepelt and I scared off Webwhisker and Nightheart. I almost killed Nightheart... I could've but I didn't want to do it there so I let him go... But I think that's what Starclan's message meant- 'Nightpaw is not the only one'- she means Flamepelt and Webwhisker too." Dawnpaw finished her explanation and Rosecloud and Smokestar exchanged glances.

"I think you're right Dawnpaw," Smokestar mewed. "There was no sign of Horsestorm so he must have been fighting at Shadowclan and sent his little slaves here. Ok Dawnpaw, thank you. You can go, try to help out in camp then get some rest. It has been a long morning."


	9. Chapter 8

_Ok guys, this was the last chapter of Book 1! I will probably write a Book 2 but I'm not sure when. For now just Read, Enjoy, and Review! Thanks :3_

Chapter 8

The sun beat down hard on Dawnpaw's pelt as Goldenblaze licked a soothing tongue over her ear. For leaf-fall, it was an unusually hot day, especially because it was only two days after the big storm.

"Relax Dawnpaw, your fur is sticking up again," Goldenblaze mewed.

"Well, I've been on edge ever since the attack... I just can't help but feel that more traitors are going to burst into camp at any moment," Dawnpaw meowed.

"Don't think that. Besides, today is your big day! You should be excited, not freaking out like this!" Goldenblaze purred. Dawnpaw knew he was right. Today would be the day her and Eaglepaw were made warriors! Smokestar had put it off a couple of days so the repairs on the camp could get done and more prey could be caught.

"I know, I know and I am excited. You know what, I'll put everything to the back of my mind for today. I only get a warriors ceremony once!" Dawnpaw purred and began to groom Goldenblaze.

"Hey Dawnpaw!" Dawnpaw turned to see Mossfur and her two kits padding towards her. Fogkit was in the lead. "Hey Dawnpaw! Guess what- I'm becoming an apprentice today!"

"Yes, I've heard Fogkit! And I'm becoming a warrior! It's a big day for both of us," Dawnpaw meowed, licking the kits forehead.

"Oh, well maybe you will be my mentor!" The kit squealed excitedly.

Dawnpaw looked at the younger cat. You could barely say he was a kit anymore because he was six moons old and big for his age. Dawnpaw knew she wouldn't be his or his sisters mentor being that she was too young and there were other warriors that deserved an apprentice more than her. She would've loved to be his mentor because they had an unusually close bond for cats that were so far apart in age.

"I don't think I will be Fogkit. I'm too young but we can still be friends and maybe your mentor will let me teach you some things. But promise me that whoever your mentor is, you will listen to everything they say and behave," Dawnpaw meowed.

"Ok Dawnpaw, I promise," Fogkit replied. He looked a little sad but brightened up a second later when his sister Dovekit tackled him and they rolled away. Mossfur smiled and nodded at Dawnpaw then followed her rambunctious kits.

"They're good kits, you must be upset that you can't mentor Fogkit," Goldenblaze meowed.

"Of course I'm a little upset, but I'm not ready for an apprentice anyway. Hey, when are you going to get an apprentice?" Dawnpaw asked.

"I don't know. I'm not mentoring either one of Mossfur's kits but Barkpelt just went into the nursery yesterday. Maybe we can both mentor one of her kits," the golden brown tom pointed out.

"That would be great! We could train them together!" As Dawnpaw said this, she saw Eaglepaw enter the camp with fresh-kill hanging from her jaws She must've went on her last hunt as an apprentice.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey, join here beneath the High Rock for a clan meeting." Dawnpaw turned to see her father on top of High Rock, his pelt shining in the sun. Her and Goldenblaze got up and walked over to where the crowd of cats were gathering. Eaglepaw and Birdsong came up beside Dawnpaw.

"Today we are gathered to make two kits apprentices and two apprentices warriors," Smokestar turned to Eaglepaw and Dawnpaw first. "I, Smokestar, leader of Thunderclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn. Eaglepaw, Dawnpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." The sister said simultaneously.

"Then by the powers of Starclan, I give you your warrior names. Eaglepaw, from this moment you will be known as Eaglefeather. And Dawnpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Dawnflower. Starclan honors your courage and intelligence, and we welcome you as full warriors of Thunderclan."

"Eaglefeather! Dawnflower! Eaglefeather! Dawnflower!" Thunderclan chanted their names and Dawnflower looked up at the sky, wondering what Treeflower thought right now. Was she proud of her former apprentice? Dawnflower had received the same name as her mentor and she was happy.

"Treeflower is proud of you, I know it," Eaglefeather whispered in her ear, as if reading her sister's thoughts.

"And now, Fogkit and Dovekit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior names, Fogkit, you will be known as Fogpaw and your mentor shall be Stripedpelt. Dovekit, you will be known as Dovepaw and your mentor shall be Robinwing. I hope they will pass down all they know to you two."

The two new mentors (Stripedpelt is a pale tom with darker tabby stripes) went up to their new apprentices and touched noses with them as the clan chanted Fogpaw and Dovepaw's name next. Fogpaw looked very excited and Dovepaw looked happy. _They will be great warriors some day, _Dawnflower thought.

That night Dawnflower and Eaglefeather sat a silent vigil guarding and now Dawnflower had a reason for being on edge. _I'll kill Nightheart if he comes tonight_, Dawnflower promised herself. But he never came. When the sun came up, Oakclaw told them that they could go get something to eat and some rest so Dawnflower and Eaglefeather decided to go hunting.

"I'm starving!" Eaglefeather exclaimed as they headed out.

"Yeah and I'm exhausted so let's hunt, eat then sleep!" Dawnflower meowed. They did well and caught a lot of prey- some mice, two squirrels, and a bird. Dawnflower took a squirrel and Eaglefeather took the bird. They sat down to eat in front of the warriors den and when they were done, they headed in to make their nest.

Goldenblaze was just waking up. His nest was closest to the entrance since he was the youngest warrior.

"Oh, look who it is, Thunderclan's newest warriors! Here I'll show you where you can sleep." Goldenblaze greeted them and took them to a spot near Goldenblaze. Dawnflower made her nest right next to Goldenblaze and Eaglefeather right next to her sister.

"Remember, there's a gathering tonight and Smokestar will probably take you two so make sure you rest up!" Goldenblaze meowed and padded out of the den.

Dawnflower curled up and fell asleep with a big smile on her face and Goldenblaze's scent lingering around her. She didn't know why, but for some reason she was very happy.

The cats going to the Gathering consisted of Smokestar, Oakclaw, Stripedpelt, Robinwing, Mossfur, Pebblenose, Dawnflower, Eaglefeather, Fogpaw and Dovepaw. Smokestar wanted to leave as many warriors as possible at camp in case there was another attack.

Thunderclan was the last one to arrive and the Gathering started right away. Dawnflower met up with her old friend, Puddlepaw, who was a Shadowclan apprentice, and introduced Eaglefeather to him. His brother was Flamepelt but Puddlepaw had not been made a warrior yet like his brother. Spottedfur, Dawnflower's other friend, did not join them because she was from Riverclan and there was tension between the clans.

Dawnflower realized that neither Horsestorm or Breezestar was at the Gathering and she saw no sign of Nightheart, Flamepelt, or Webwhisker either. Lightninglegs, one of the senior Windclan warriors, stood in his leaders place. He was a golden brown tom with a white underbelly and long legs.

"So again, Shadowclan and Thunderclan come to this Gathering wondering why we were attacked by not just Windclan but Riverclan too. We have done nothing wrong, and we demand to know why," Smokestar growled. Russetstar nodded her head in agreement.

"Yes and may I ask Lightninglegs, where Breezestar and Horsestorm are?" The Shadowclan leader added.

"Breezestar has fallen ill but will be better soon. And as for Horsestorm, we don't know," the golden brown tom replied.

"Don't know? What do you mean you don't know?" Smokestar demanded.

"After the battle, he left along with Nightheart, Flamepelt and Webwhisker. We had thought he went to join another clan but since you don't know where he is, I assume they probably ran for it," Lightninglegs meowed calmly.

"Ran from what? Why? And where could he have gone?" Russetstar wondered.

"We do not know, but Breezestar has made me deputy in his place. What we would like to know, is why each of your apprentices has joined our clan?" The new Windclan deputy retorted.

"They are traitors, power-hungry and blood-thirsty. Your old deputy manipulated Thunderclan's apprentice and persuaded him to join him on a quest for power. I think it is safe to assume that he did the same with Shadowclan and Riverclan's apprentices," Smokestar replied. "Speaking of Riverclan, you never answered my original question; why the attack? And Riverclan, why did you join them?"

"We were both in need for shelter from the storm. The river was overflowing and Windclan had no where to go on the moors. Breezestar must have still been sick then because Horsestorm came to us and asked if we would like to launch an attack on Thunderclan and Shadowclan for shelter and of course, we didn't refuse," Rainstar meowed, breaking Riverclan's silence.

"Something tells me that's not the only reason," Eaglefeather whispered in Dawnflower's ear. She nodded in agreement. Why launch a full on battle against two clans because of one storm that raged on for a single night? It made no sense.

Russetstar snorted. She must have had the same suspicions as Dawnflower and her sister. "Then Shadowclan will be sure to keep a look out for the four traitors and if we see_ any _of them on our territory, we'll kill them."

Puddlepaw flinched at his leaders harsh words. He obviously still cared about his brother, regardless of what he did. But Dawnflower did not.

"Same for Thunderclan," Smokestar meowed.

"Do whatever you like. They are not part of Windclan anymore," Lightninglegs mewed.

"I think this Gathering is over. Thunderclan, let's go," Smokestar turned and walked away, signaling for his clan to follow.

"You alright Puddlepaw?" Dawnflower asked the Shadowclan apprentice.

"I-I'm fine... it's just hard. I didn't think Flamepelt would do something like this," he admitted.

"Well we didn't think Nightheart would either, but it's done. Just stay strong. Hopefully we'll see you at the next Gathering," Eaglefeather comforted.

Puddlepaw nodded and followed his clan away from Fourtrees. "This forest is falling apart... everything is a mess. What's going to happen to us if we can't pull it together?" Eaglefeather meowed, shaking her head.

"I don't know Eaglefeather, I don't know," Dawnflower replied.

_ I wish I did. I guess the answer to her question is the prophecy, _Dawnflower thought. _The forest will be saved by an unexpected enemy, but a sacrifice will be made. Beware the cat you thought you could trust, but respect him all the same._


End file.
